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Brian Thoreen Bowls and Baskets

American

Is it art? Is it furniture? Is there a distinction? These are questions designer Brian Thoreen answers in his provocative work, which ranges from curved glass tables, weighed down by cast bronze blocks, to blown glass “melted” over angular handcrafted metalwork. Sometimes his designs are obviously quite functional and categorical, other times artistic merit outweighs function. Either way, his works highlight and draw on the power inherent in his chosen materials, and Thoreen thrives in the spaces in between

Thoreen had explored a range of disciplines and mediums before committing to furniture design. He filled his 20s with experimentation with painting, fabrication, building, welding, architecture and fashion — but he always came back to making furniture. Thoreen studied painting in community college, though much of his talent in design is a culmination of experience he amassed through jobs along the way. He worked as an art installer at Kayne Griffin Gallery, a carpenter at Southern California architecture firm Marmol Radziner and also founded his own gallery MASA and experimental glassmaking collective, VISSIO.

While Thoreen has found a renewed vigor since relocating to Mexico in 2017, the 1960s and '70s Los Angeles art scene informs much of his work. Thoreen learned firsthand from many artists of the era including James Turrell, Ed Ruscha, Larry Bell and Robert Irwin. These visual artists, who were associated with the period's Light and Space movement, explored light in relation to geometric abstraction and minimalism, which resurface as themes in Thoreen’s furniture. 

Thoreen’s Cantilever tables and Reaching Console in his sculptural Unsettled collection, which was exhibited at Patrick Parrish’s gallery in New York City in 2017, feature a sublime marriage of marble, smoked glass and cast bronze, and the components are not held together by the typical hardware associated with these kinds of structures — none of the pieces use fasteners of any kind.

With his prioritization of minimalism and the honesty of the materials, Thoreen endeavored to ensure that his pieces wouldn’t need any fasteners secured by screws to stand on their own, relying instead on what he knew about mass and space (a set of bronze counterweights is doing the heavy lifting on the collection's Console). As such, like each of the designer’s works, they’re striking statement pieces in any space — “unsettled” or not. 

On 1stDibs, find a collection of Brian Thoreen decorative objects, storage case pieces and lighting.

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Creator: Brian Thoreen
Brian Thoreen Vessel 2
By Brian Thoreen
Located in Brooklyn, NY
One of three vessels developed as the material maquette's for Brian Thoreen's larger works. Comprised of a cast bronze bowl, grey marble and grey glass. Also available in brown or re...
Category

2010s American Brian Thoreen Bowls and Baskets

Materials

Marble, Bronze

Brian Thoreen Vessel 2
Brian Thoreen Vessel 2
Price Upon Request
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Brian Thoreen bowls and baskets for sale on 1stDibs.

Brian Thoreen bowls and baskets are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of stone and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Brian Thoreen bowls and baskets, although gold editions of this piece are particularly popular. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider bowls and baskets by UMÉ Studio, Trish DeMasi, and Lynne Meade Ceramics. Prices for Brian Thoreen bowls and baskets can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $16,300 and can go as high as $16,300, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $16,300.

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